jewelry

30 April, 2019 - 22:56 Ed Whelan

Ancient Raptor Captors Weren’t Thugs: Neanderthals Caught Eagles and Treasured Their Talons

The golden eagle has had a special place in many human societies for millennia. They have been hunted , used to hunt and also honored. But the Neanderthals also seem to have prized and revered these...

Ancient Peruvian mask made of gold (Carlos Santa Maria / Adobe Stock)

6 April, 2019 - 22:55 ancient origins

From Medicine to Nanotechnology: How Gold Has Quietly Shaped our World

The periodic table of chemical elements turns 150 this year. The anniversary is a chance to shine a light on particular elements – some of which seem ubiquitous but which ordinary people beyond the...

27 March, 2019 - 16:51 dhwty

Unravelling the True Story of the Beautiful Tara Brooch: A Masterpiece of Celtic Metalwork

The Tara Brooch is an ancient Celtic metalwork masterpiece. Stories say it came from the Hill of Tara - traditionally regarded as the seat of the Irish High Kings. Although that is a fabrication...

21 March, 2019 - 21:38 Kerry Sullivan

Legendary Claddagh Rings: What are the True Origins of these Symbolic Irish Wedding Rings?

The Claddagh ring design of two hands holding a crowned heart is a recognizable symbol of Ireland and enduring love. It is hugely popular as a fashion accessory and a symbolic gesture. While everyone...

The Paleolithic tiara made of woolly mammoth ivory can be dated approximately to between 45,000 to 50,000 years old.

7 December, 2018 - 13:58 ancient-origins

50,000 Year Old ‘Tiara’ Made of Woolly Mammoth Ivory Found in the Famous Denisova Cave

By The Siberian Times reporter The remarkable find was made this summer in the famous Siberian cave where, over many millennia, early Homo sapiens lived alongside extinct Neanderthals and another...

28 August, 2018 - 19:05 ancient-origins

Ten of the Oldest Everyday Items Ever Found

Every day you get up, get dressed, eat, and probably head out to work, school, or some other activity outside your home. If you work, you may have to interact with customers, who are not always...

Clay pot full of coins and precious metal objects found at Kaliakra fortress

24 August, 2018 - 23:02 Ed Whelan

Clay Pot Filled With 1000 Precious Metal Treasures Found at Kaliakra Fortress

The National Museum of Bulgaria has announced that they have discovered a small clay pot at Kaliakra Fortress that contains a hoard of priceless objects from the 14 th century. There are believed to...

Some of the 3000 gold and metal objects found in the burial mound in Kazakhstan

1 August, 2018 - 22:52 Ed Whelan

Thousands of Gold and Precious Metal Items Found in Saka Burial Mound

The Kazakhstan government has announced a very exciting archaeological find in a remote mountainous area of the country. A team of archaeologists has unearthed a huge trove of golden objects and...

7 July, 2018 - 13:45 Mark Miller

Bronze Age gold rings of a high-status person found in Wales

Two gold rings, possibly used as earrings or to hold hair in place, were found in Rosset, Wrexham, Wales. Archaeologists say the rings date back 3,000 years to the Bronze Age. The person who wore the...

The four gold rings recovered from County Donegal, Ireland.

2 July, 2018 - 22:44 Ed Whelan

Farmer in Ireland Unearths Golden Objects from the Bronze Age

The BBC has reported that a farmer in Ireland has discovered a treasure trove of golden rings. The find was made in County Donegal and it was unearthed entirely by accident. It is believed that it...

Main: Hopewell burial mounds in Ohio (CC by SA 3.0). Inset: One of the meteoritic iron beads found in a Hopewell mound.

2 July, 2018 - 15:13 Theodoros Karasavvas

Jewelry from Outer Space: Hopewell Culture Made Beads from Meteoritic Iron

A team of scientists has discovered the origins of the ancient Hopewell culture's meteorite jewelry. The beads were found in a burial mound in Havana, Illinois, in 1945. Many questions about the...

30 June, 2018 - 17:32 dhwty

The Great Death Pit of Ur: Mass Human Sacrifice in Ancient Mesopotamia

During Sir Charles Leonard Woolley’s excavation of Ur from 1922 to 1934, any burial without a tomb chamber was given the name ‘death pit’ (known also as ‘grave pits’). Arguably the most impressive...

A reconstruction of the headdress and necklace of Puabi, the British Museum. (JMail/CC BY SA 3.0) A lion’s head found at the royal cemetery. (Sumerian Shakespeare) Bull's head of the Queen's lyre from Pu-abi's grave PG 800, the Royal Cemetery at Ur, Southern Mesopotamia, Iraq. The British Museum, London. (Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg)/CC BY SA 4.0)

27 June, 2018 - 22:59 dhwty

Revealing the Secrets of Sumerian Riches: Treasures from the Royal Cemetery of Ur

The Royal Cemetery of Ur received its name because of the large quantity of treasures that were discovered there during the excavations headed by Sir Charles Leonard Woolley between 1922 and 1934...

20 June, 2018 - 13:59 Alicia McDermott

Gas Engineer’s Large Collection of Ancient Rings May Fetch $130000 at UK Auction

A stunning assemblage of Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Viking, and medieval rings is going up for auction next week. They come from a remarkable ancient rings collection which was once owned by a...

An image of white-tailed eagle talons from the Krapina Neanderthal site in present-day Croatia, dating to approximately 130,000 yars ago, may be part of a jewelry assemblage.

15 June, 2018 - 02:36 ancient-origins

Did Neanderthals make jewelry 130,000 years go? Eagle claws provide clues

Krapina Neanderthals may have manipulated white-tailed eagle talons to make jewelry 130,000 years ago, before the appearance of modern human in Europe, according to a study published March 11, 2015...

Fountain at modern domus building at Viminacium, Serbia

4 June, 2018 - 23:00 Ed Whelan

Roman Skeletons Adorned in Jewelry Found in Serbia

Reuters has reported that archaeologists in Serbia have discovered a Roman sarcophagus that was intact and had been undisturbed for almost two thousand years. The tomb contains many precious items...

Pages

Myths & Legends

Camazotz Maya style Batman suit created by Mexican designer Kimbal

Batman Existed in Mesoamerican Mythology and His Name Was Camazotz

As social media is abuzz with who might be cast in the next Batman movie, with concerns that some of the candidates might not be menacing enough to fill those big black boots, it might be time to...

The Brosno Dragon: The Loch Ness Monster’s Evil Russian Cousin?

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

Scota: Mother of Scotland and Daughter of a Pharaoh

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Searching For a Way to the Home Planet

The Real Story of Medusa: Protective Powers from a Snake-Haired Gorgon

Human Origins

The Pagan Wheel of the Year: What Elaborate Rituals and Events Mark this Sacred Cycle?

Although it may be a long time (if ever) before pagans reclaim their Yule from Christmas or their Samhain from Halloween, it is worthwhile to explore these ancient religious traditions. The Wheel of the Year follows the cycle of pagan festivals.

Mastema – The ‘Persecutor’ of God

The Secret Life of an Ancient Concubine

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Rh-Negative Blood: An Exotic Bloodline or Random Mutation?

Ancient Technology

3D printed model of the ancient site of Puma Punku, Tiwanaku.

Advanced Ancient Architecture of Puma Punku Site is Fully Recreated With 3D Printing

Part of the ancient archaeological site of Tiwanaku, Bolivia, believed by Incans to be where the world was created has been reconstructed using 3D printed models of fragments of an ancient building.

Pick Your Poison: The AK-47 of the Ancient Near East

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

Ancient Journeys: What was Travel Like for the Romans?

Norimitsu Odachi: Who Could Have Possibly Wielded This Enormous 15th Century Japanese Sword?

The engineering marvel of the Pozzo di San Patrizio

Ancient Places

The White Slaves of Barbary

Much attention and condemnation has been directed towards the tragedy of the African slave trade , which took place between the 16 th and the 19 th centuries. However, another equally despicable...

First Kingdoms: The Forgotten Mesopotamian Kingdom of Ebla

The Dark Underworld of the Paris Catacombs

Devetashka - the Bulgarian Cave with 70,000 Years of Human Habitation

The White Slaves of Barbary

Masyaf Castle, the Seat of the Assassins

Opinion

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

There are many accounts of a land of immortality and eternal youth in world myths and legends, as well as shamanic and indigenous spiritual traditions. Mysterious Worlds Writing in his recent work,...

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

Cracking the Code to Discover Ancient Tarot Symbolism and Forgotten Universal Knowledge

The Secret Strategic Plans of Darius the Great

The Secrets of the Kabbalists Garden

Our Mission

At Ancient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there exists countless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts that have yet to be discovered and explained.

The goal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe.

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By bringing together top experts and authors, this archaeology website explores lost civilizations, examines sacred writings, tours ancient places, investigates ancient discoveries and questions mysterious happenings. Our open community is dedicated to digging into the origins of our species on planet earth, and question wherever the discoveries might take us. We seek to retell the story of our beginnings.